Wednesday, December 24, 2008

I thought about writing a long blog about Christmas, but I figured that would be boring. So here's just a recap of what's been happening in the great state of Washington:

-It's been snowing a ton, and I love it!

-Aaron finally came home yesterday after working in Montana for 3 weeks!

-I have an interview in January for a teaching position in Texas for next school year

-Elphie is a nut case, as usual, and still loves every minute of being out in the snow, but now that the snow is getting deeper, she hasn't been enjoying going to the bathroom... (but it think it's hilarious)

-Aaron still needs to do all of his holiday shopping TODAY...as in Christmas Eve...awesome.

-I've figured out how to do selective colorization to my photos, which I think is the coolest thing since sliced bread!

-My Ipod's wheel doesn't work anymore, which makes me a very sad panda.

-I picked out my first real Christmas tree yesterday. For those of you who don't know, I've never had a real tree. We were a very green family growing up...

That's about all I've got for now. Happy holidays everyone! Love and miss you all :)

Sunday, December 14, 2008

It finally snowed here in my part of Washington! I'm super-excited because it's about an inch, if that, so its not bad to drive in, but its still pretty :) I'm also excited because I get to laugh at how silly everyone around here is acting because its snowing just a little bit. Last night at work, big fat snowflakes start falling very slowly, and one of my managers told me about because he knew I was from Ohio and I like snow. Well, it was really nothing, but everyone else that came through the store was complaining about it snowing and how it was cold (well, duh). Some of my co-workers informed me that people are going to start putting chains on their tires, driving about 25 mph on the freeway and most people will start stocking up on water, firewood and batteries and "hunker down". Apparently people around here want the snow to stay in the mountains. After work, I drove home very cautiously, in fear of some crazy Washingtonian will be driving too slow, or will think they can drive however they want because they have 4 wheel drive (IF they even know how to use it...eeek!). Of course I made it home safely and went to sleep. Well, this morning I was rudely awoken to my pup barking at kids sledding down the sides of the road. Since there was barely an inch of snow, the sleds were just grinding on the pavement, and Miss Elphie did NOT enjoy that one bit.

But she sure did love seeing snow for the first time! I took her for a walk this morning, and she LOVED the snow! She was very unsure about the white stuff on the ground at first, but once she licked some up, she decided it was good enough to roll around in. After rolling around, then trying to chase the snow I was throwing, we went on a walk and Elphie barely picked her nose up out of the snow. She was very disappointed to come in the house after the walk and I'm not sure if she's really depressed about not being able to play in the snow longer, or if she was really tired. Maybe I'll just have to turn her into a sled dog! :)

Elphie likes to be OCD with her food (like dog, like owner?). If the kibble in her bowl is not level or flattened out when it is given to her, the crazy little dog will flatten all the kibble to her liking. "How did you notice such a small quirk?", you might ask. Well, Aaron and I first noticed when the big dogs' food was spilled into piles and clumps on the floor one afternoon. About a half hour later, we looked to see how much of it our little dog had gotten her paws on. Turns out, Elphie lined up every piece of kibble that didn't get gobbled up by the big dogs into 3, flat, and almost exactly even rows. After that incident, we kept an eye on the pup the next couple of times she ate some food, and sure enough, she flattened out the food in her bowl before she'd taken a bite. I then decided to do some research on Obsessive Compulsive Disorder in dogs to see if there was anything we should be watching out for. Turns out OCD in dogs is caused by stress, anxiety or boredom. Luckily Elphie's compulsions are not aggressive (like digging, barking at nothing, biting her feet, etc.) This worried me a bit because I didn't want my pup to be so bored that her last resort was to compulsively flatten her food! So of course my solution has been more walks and more playing (it never seems to end!), and it turns out that she still flattens out her food before she eats. I'm going to leave Elphie's diagnosis at weirdo with a chance of turning into full-blown OCD if she isn't played with and walked until her stubby little nubs can't walk any more! So what if my dog has a few idiosyncrasies? No one is perfect and it's free entertainment! To go along with her food oddity, my little pup is scared of the heater! Any time the heater is on in the room, she refuses to go near it. Elphie loves her squeaky bone, but she doesn't love it enough to run after it if I throw it in front of the heater. What a silly and crazy little pup!

Good news on the job front has finally come through for Aaron! He is working for a wind turbine company as a Wind Turbine Commissioner. He's getting paid well to work on wind energy, of which he's a big advocate, which is awesome! Except that right now he's in Montana doing his job :( For now, he's working there and getting paid to live in a hotel until the 23rd of December, which was hard at first for him while he was going through orientation and not actually getting to work on the turbines. Now, he's really enjoying getting to finally work on the turbines and working long days, which doesn't make it any easier for me, but I'm glad that he's enjoying the work more. After the holidays and New Year, he'll be going back to the same place in Montana for a few weeks and then may get moved to a different location, which is yet to be determined. In the meantime, I am still chillin' in Washington with my pup, and working at Old Navy. My job hunt, has not been going quite as well. I've heard next to nothing, no matter how late I stay up applying to jobs. To make matters worse, the economy isn't helping me work more hours at Old Navy. I've been sent home early twice this week because we haven't been getting enough business. At one point during my shift yesterday, there was not a single customer in the store and this lack of customers lasted for a good 20 minutes. At least I get some hours, right? At least enough to make car payments...

Whhaaatt?? Did I say car payments? YOU BET!

Mark this down in history, folks. I have a new car. Now don't have a heart attack. Breathe...breathe...breathe...

It's an '06 Ford Freestyle, so it's technically a crossover, but it looks like a wagon. Very spacious with fold-down seats, leather interior, 6-CD disk changer, rear sensors, Midnight Blue, power windows, power locks, AIR CONDITIONING, and last but certainly not least, cup holders. It's nicer and newer than any car I'd ever imagine having at age 22. Nothing fancy, which is why I like it, but it's my new whip, so hooray for me! (And I sure hope Ron is super-proud of me for taking his advice and getting a car instead of "fancy gadgets" with my first couple paychecks. See, I did listen!) I still haven't come up with a name for the car though, so if you have any ideas, send 'em my way!

In between playing with the dog, missing my boyfriend, working and paying off my car, I've actually been reading, believe it or not! I didn't work today, so I stayed up last night finishing the book Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert, which turned out to be very good! A friend recommended it to me last year and I didn't get a chance to pick up a copy and read it until I got settled here in WA. Super-condensed synopsis: this woman get a divorce and travels to Italy, India, and Indonesia to find balance and happiness in her life. She begins her journey with practicing yoga, which I've always wanted to try, and after finishing the book, REALLY makes me want to try a session at the YMCA. Maybe once the New Year starts, eh? I suppose yoga on Wii Fit will do until then :)

Here are some random pictures from the past few weeks that you might enjoy. Until next time...